In my lunch break today I went to the alterations place around the corner, hoping to get some minor alterations done to a few shirts. They all fit nicely on the shoulders, but I'm tall and thin so I was hoping to get them taken in a little around the waist, and maybe have the sleeves adjusted so they don't look so billowy over my chicken arms. Again, they all fit passably well, but I was hoping to have them altered to fit me perfectly.

I've never had clothes altered before, but from reading online I didn't think any of these requests would pose a problem. But I was essentially told that none of my shirts could be altered because it will affect the shape of the shirt (I kind of thought that was the point of alteration, but didn't want to say anything). Specifically, the sleeves couldn't be brought in without making the arm hole smaller and higher, therefore making it impossible to move my arms.

Is this true, or should I take them somewhere else? (If so, where would you recommend?) Is it possible that the specific shirts I brought in wouldn't take well to alteration?

I also had a pair of pants that she said she couldn't make less baggy without closing half of the pocket, which confused me but by that point I was ready to leave.

As journey man has pointed out this advice is possibly correct and but it also is like many questions asked here, lacking context and an objective view of the interaction. That is not complete. However this is the internet and lack of knowledge never stops any opinions.

Basically anything can be altered in almost anyway - it may cost a small fortune or may throw out elements of the piece of clothing but it can be done.( I think theres a post back a few pages about altering an expensive dinner suit - also see the concept of "sunk costs" ) What your alterationist (its not clear if its a seamstress or tailor or alterations person - all are a bit different) has possibly done is to tell you in their own way that its not a positive cost benefit exercise given the "normal" price most people are willing to pay.

Slimming or taking in, a shirt below the armholes one of the easiest things to do . Hard to muck up even, unless you cut of excess before trying on and go too slim or do some silly things up near the armhole. Slimming/ taking in sleeves is a bit more technical. Running the machine down the seam and taking in the sleeve can be done in a quick and dirty way by veering (not technical speak) in to the armhole opening, so you might end up with a large armhole opening but slim sleeve and slim body - looking a bit odd. (OTOH if you keep your jacket on at all times no one will see it - but then they wont see your unaltered shirt either!)

In theory if you are slimming both the body and sleeve then you can make a smaller armhole at the same time ( I'm waving my hands around to show how and why) but then you are in the realm of expensive work and it would possibly be cheaper to buy a new shirt that fits.

Without being rude it might to be a good time to ask why you want THIS shirt slimmed so much and why not buy one that fits?

Trousers - depends how much taking in they need to make "less baggy" and where. Theres again a limit with trousers how much they can be altered around the general hips and thighs area without effecting pockets and other complicated things. Down below the hips,waist, thighs almost anything, cuffs, slimming leg etc, is a much simpler job.

Again it is worth asking are the pants special enough to risk ruining the look by seeking to make them too much what they are not and spending half the price of a new pair that fit?

but then you are in the realm of expensive work and it would possibly be cheaper to buy a new shirt that fits.

Again it is worth asking are the pants special enough to risk ruining the look by seeking to make them too much what they are not.

Couldn't agree more fxh. Just get some new gear. All this alteration caper ... I dont have the patience for it all. Taking trousers in to put a cuff on is about the limit of my need for alterations thank goodness.

Have you guys purchased suits/jackets from suit supply? Do most of the fits seem to have quite a high buttoning point or is that just me?

There's a massive Suit Supply thread on the front page so you should probably read that. Certain models have a higher buttoning point than others. Others have shorter jacket lengths and slimmer pants. IIRC, the Sienna model has the lowest buttoning point.

Thanks for the opinions all. As mentioned, I am tall and thin so clothes rarely, if ever, fit me off the rack and MTM is out of my budget. Unfortunately "just get clothes that fit" is easier said than done, and says nothing for the wardrobe full of shirts and pants I already have.

Thanks for the opinions all. As mentioned, I am tall and thin so clothes rarely, if ever, fit me off the rack and MTM is out of my budget. Unfortunately "just get clothes that fit" is easier said than done, and says nothing for the wardrobe full of shirts and pants I already have.

Indochino. Get one of their essential suits for $379USD. Measure yourself or get someone else too. Or just measure your best fitting suit and make adjustments as necessary. If you can't afford $379 then maybe hold off until you earn a bit more.

People will harp on that Indochino is shit etc. However the majority of bad examples you see are because the idiot buying had no clue how to measure themselves. I'm a 2 time repeat customer and would buy from again. Plus I'm like you (6'1, 78kg, 30" waist, shoulders to fit a 42 jacket and bigger than average quads).

Thanks for the opinions all. As mentioned, I am tall and thin so clothes rarely, if ever, fit me off the rack and MTM is out of my budget. Unfortunately "just get clothes that fit" is easier said than done, and says nothing for the wardrobe full of shirts and pants I already have.

Mmmh how tall and how thin?
Theres a lot of it about - you mightn't be that far off the average.

Where are you? Theres lots of inexpensive ways to get ok pants and shirts that fit. Well at least not a lot dearer than getting stuff altered.

Tell us more

edit: I might add that in spite of a lot of the juvenile swinging dick talk around on some forums theres no shame in not be able to afford to spend a lot of $$ on clothes. In fact starting out its generally wise not to.

I have been getting better with buying shirts that fit properly, having measured myself for the first time a few weeks ago. I just don't really want to wear shirts that fit me moderately well if I can get them slightly altered to fit perfectly. These are all shirts I bought before I really understood what I was doing, and they're all from different brands so each one needs something different (some are baggy around the waist, some have sleeves too long, some too short, etc.). So it's not the end of the world if I can't get them fixed, I was just surprised that something as simple as bringing in a shirt around the waist caused the alteration lady to baulk.

I've never even looked into MTM shirts in the past, but if they're reasonably priced I could see myself getting a shirt as an experiment in the future. Not even sure where to begin with that though.

Also, I don't need suits - biz cas is what I wear every day, so really just trousers/chinos and dress shirts. I'm 6'3" and about 70kgs at my heaviest, with incomprehensibly skinny arms.

The one Rob linked a couple of pages back does seem to have a high stance. However, it is a sports coat. This means it is going to be a little shorter in length (1 maybe 2 inches) than a typical suit jacket, and the button position will change relative to the change in size; it will be a little higher.

There's a massive Suit Supply thread on the front page so you should probably read that. Certain models have a higher buttoning point than others. Others have shorter jacket lengths and slimmer pants. IIRC, the Sienna model has the lowest buttoning point.

Yeah I've given most of that a read in the past but some of the information there is contradictory or misleading, whilst you guys are usually pretty good.